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Miss your class visit
to the library?
How
can I determine what databases Chaffey College Library has access to?
Or,
if you login to AGent,
there is also a list of databases arranged by title and by subject
under the section "Library Services".
These two pages include descriptions and direct access to the databases.
How
do I decide which database to use for my topic?
After logging into
AGent, under the section "Library Services",
there is a link to Databases by Subject. This page
includes a complete list of all the Chaffey Library databases arranged
by type of resources (such as reference works, newspapers, books,
journals) and by subject area (such as psychology, medicine, literature).
How
can I determine which journals and magazines are in each database?
We have a tool accessible
via AGent,
called Serials Solutions, that you can
use to find out if we have any full-text electronic access to a
particular journal, magazine, or newspaper.
How
do I read the entire text or the complete article from start to finish?
Look for a box to checkmark
on the various databases. For example, in Expanded Academic
ASAP, the full text box is located under the yellow
search box and is labeled “to articles with text”
and on Academic Search Premier, the full
text box is labeled “full text". Our
Database Instruction Sheets
also discuss search limits, such as full-text.
Can
I search more than one Chaffey College database at a time?
Metasearching,
the ability to search more than one database or resource at a time,
is now available via AGent.
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What
should I do if I am unable to login to AGent?
Make sure that you are
typing in your correct seven-digit Chaffey ID number; you need to
put the seven numbers (no initials) in the first box and
your six-digit birthdate (two numbers for the month, two
for the day, and the last two numbers of the year) with no slashes,
spaces, or anything else between the numbers in the second box.
Are you currently
registered for a class at Chaffey this semester, and are your fees
paid? If not, you will not be able to get access to AGent. Keep
in mind that records are only updated once a day, so you will not
be able to access Agent until the day after you've registered and
paid.
If you are currently
enrolled and you are still unable to login, please stop by the Reference
Desk and a librarian can assist you with this.
Research
Issues
How
do I do a college level research paper?
A suggested
research process is:
How
do I define a research topic or how do I find an interesting topic?
A great place to find
a topic for papers is from the search page of Opposing
Viewpoints Resource Center, accessible via AGent.
Other suggestions are
to check the Table of Contents of your textbook
for interesting and relevant topics, brainstorm with your instructor
or classmates or scan daily newspapers or current magazines for
potential topics.
How
do I do I develop a plan for my research?
Always confirm with
your instructor the requirements of the assignment. In general,
a good research plan includes several different types of information:
-
Background
information on your topic
This type of information will most likely be found in a
book, either from consulting the Catalog,
eBooks or an electronic format
of a reference book like those available on Gale Virtual
Reference or Encyclopedia Britannica,
accesible via AGent.
-
The current status of your topic
This type of information will most likely be found in either a
newspaper, magazine or a journal.
To access these, you will use a database such as Expanded
Academic ASAP or Academic Search Premier
or LexisNexis.
-
Your
conclusion must be stated in your own words (see
plagiarism) and can sometimes include personal
opinion supported by facts found in the first two steps of this
process.
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How
do I find the information I need for my research paper?
Always confirm with
your instructor the requirements of the assignment. Your assignment
will usually require a certain number of sources,
as well as specifying which types of sources
you are allowed to use, for example, books and Internet websites.
Chaffey College Library subscribes to a number of databases
which you may use to access magazine, journal and newspaper articles
on a 24/7 basis accessible via AGent.
Another good resource
to keep in mind when using our databases if you have questions
is the help link in the actual database. They can give
you some very useful tips for searching and using the database.
How
do I evaluate the information I've found to determine which is "the
best" to use?
Always confirm with
your instructor the requirements of the assignment. Your instructor
will usually have restrictions on the type of information you
can use, for example:
-
Can
you use information from websites, and if so, how many websites
are you allowed to use?
-
Does
your information have to be from a certain date range, like no
earlier than 2001?
-
Are
you allowed to use encyclopedias?
-
Can
you use biased information?
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How
do I organize and present my information?
Always confirm with
your instructor the requirements of the assignment. Instructions
for your research paper can usually be found on the course syllabus.
Many instructors load their syllabi on the library’s ERes
system accessible via AGent.
The Writing
Center has also developed handouts about the structure of
the research paper, including sample papers. They also have links
to many of the English
instructors' syllabi.
Chaffey College Library
also has computers with Microsoft
Office available on a first-come, first served basis for you to
type your research papers. Please remember to bring a disk or
flash drive to save your work. Printing is available at .10 per
page.
How
do I cite my information?
You will usually have
to include a "works cited" page listing
the resources your used to research and write your paper. Your
instructor usually has very specific instructions regarding this
works cited page. The following are links to handouts put together
by the Chaffey College
Writing Center about particular citation formats:
If you need assistance
or have additional questions about how to cite sources, the folks
at the Writing and
Success Centers can help you.
What
should I do if I have a topic but can not find enough information
on it quickly?
You
will need to broaden your search term to increase
the amount of information you retrieve. The easiest way to broaden
a search is to use the word OR with several synonyms,
such as:
What
should I do if I have a topic but too much information?
You will
need to narrow your search term to decrease the
amount of information you retrieve. The easiest way to narrow a
search is to use your original search term and add a second search
term, such as:
"Gun
control" and legislation
"Media violence" and children
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What
is plagiarism and do I need to worry about it?
Plagiarism means copying
or paraphrasing without indicating the source. Plagiarism can
be considered a form of "literary theft" and therefore
is academically dishonest. Chaffey College's position on cheating
is stated in the schedule of classes in the section headed, "College
Policies". Plagiarism occurs when students...
-
Use
information other than common knowledge without giving a source
through proper footnote
-
Quote
words or phrases of another without using quotation marks and
using proper footnotes
-
Fail
to use their own words when paraphrasing, or presenting the work
of others
-
Fail
to footnote paraphrased or summarized material
For more information,
take a look at this page on plagiarism
put together by Georgetown University.
Why
would I use a book when I can find most things on the Internet?
Factual information
found from Internet websites can take a lot of time to evaluate
in order to decide whether the information is credible or not.
Some questions you may need to find the answers to if you decide
to use a website are: what are the credentials of the person posting
the information; when was the information last updated; and does
the information represent a factual or a biased approach to the
topic? It may take more time than you realize to track down the
answers to these questions.
Also, the strength
of books is that they are a good source for background
information: the who, what,
where, when
and why on a topic. You might
have to look through several websites to find this, where it may
be readily accessible in one or two books.
There are two ways
to locate books – the traditional way
of finding a book in the library and the electronic way of accessing
a library book online.
How
can I renew my books online?
In some
cases, you can renew books checked out to you online using the
Catalog
or you can bring the books to the Circulation
Desk to renew them. Books cannot be renewed
over the phone. Overdue materials cannot be renewed;
renewals must be made on or before the due date. There is no
limit on renewals, but all materials must be returned by the
end of the semester. Books with holds placed on them cannot
be renewed.
How
do I find an eBook?
If you want to access
a library book online, try eBooks-NetLibrary
via our AGent
portal: Using eBooks-Net
Library (.pdf)
Keep in mind that if
you are looking for a book on your topic, your best bet is still
going to be the traditional print books: our
eBook collection currently contains over 9,000 volumes but we
have over 77,000 print volumes available at the
Library on the Rancho campus.
What
is the difference between a magazine and a journal?
- Articles are usually written
by scientists, researchers or subject
specialists reporting the results of an
experiment, survey, or research
project
- Articles usually are at
least 3000 words long
- Articles usually have
a bibliography at the end
- Articles usually include
charts, statistics or surveys - "hard data"
-
Articles
are usually written by journalists, not necessarily
subject specialists
-
Articles
are rarely over 3000 words - unless it is the cover
story
-
Articles
rarely have bibliographies
-
Articles
may have great photos but not usually anything
considered "hard data"
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How
do I find articles from a journal?
Try using Expanded
Academic ASAP or Academic Search Premier,
two databases accessible via our AGent
portal. Both have the ability to limit searches to
refereed or peer-reviewed publications (journals).
Using
Expanded Academic ASAP (.pdf)
Using
Academic Search Premier (.pdf)
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How
do I find articles from a magazine?
Both Expanded
Academic ASAP and Academic Search Premier
are good databases to use for articles out of magazines. If you are
doing research on a controversial topic, you might want to take a
look at Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center
as well.
Using
Expanded Academic ASAP (.pdf)
Using
Academic Search Premier (.pdf)
Using
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center (.pdf)
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What
is a scholarly or peer reviewed journal?
Scholarly and peer-reviewed
journals have a rigorous review process for submitted articles.
They also have the characteristics listed for journals
above. This is why many instructors will expect you to rely more
and more on journal rather than magazine articles.
Many of our databases
have the ability to limit searches to refereed
or peer-reviewed publications (journals) including
Expanded Academic ASAP and Academic
Search Premier, two databases accessible via our AGent
portal.
How
do I read the entire magazine or journal article and not just an abstract
or a brief citation?
Some
of our databases, such as Expanded Academic ASAP
and Academic Search Premier, have limits
that you can place on searches so that only articles with the full-text
articles will be included in the results. Many of our other databases,
such as Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center,
include only full-text articles.
How
do I use Expanded Academic ASAP to find an article in a specific journal?
If you need articles
on a certain topic from a specific journal or magazine, Expanded
Academic has the ability to limit your search to up
to ten different titles.
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Subject-specific
databases with articles
Keep in
mind that there are several subject-specific databases accessible
via AGent
that contain full-text articles, including:
AccessScience
Alt Health Watch
Business Source Premier
Business and Company Resource Center
EBSCO Military and Government Collection
Health and Wellness Resource Center
Health Reference Center Academic
Health Source - Consumer Edition
Health Source -Nursing/Academic Edition
Literature Resource Center
MagillOnLiterature Plus
Military and Intelligence Database
Professional Collection
Professional Development Collection
Regional Business News
Religion and Philosophy (Infotrac)
Religion and Philosophy Collection
Scribner Writers Series
Twayne's Authors Series
Vocational and Career Collection
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How do I find
newspaper articles from a database?
We have several databases
that contain newspaper articles accessible via
AGent: Custom Newspapers, Lexis
Nexis, and Newspaper Source. If
you are doing research on a controversial topic, you might also
take a look at Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center;
there is a results tab for newspapers and there are usually several
articles available from out of the New York Times.
How
do I use LexisNexis (useful for searching the New York Times back
to 1980) to find newspaper articles?
If you need to find
newspaper articles from a specific date range, such as headlines
from the day you were born, take a look at Lexis Nexis,
accessible via AGent.
This database has access to full-text articles from hundreds of
newspapers around the globe dating back as far as 1980.
How
do I find local newspaper articles from newspapers like the Inland
Valley Daily Bulletin or the San Bernardino Sun?
If you need an article
from a local newspaper, try Lexis Nexis,
accessible via AGent.
This database includes articles from several California-based
newspapers and will allow you to limit your search to news sources
from a particular state.
Websites
How
can I evaluate a website to determine "good" or legitimate
information from "bad" information?
Examine the URL(the
web address)– it often gives you a few clues about who put
the information on the website. In general, you have a better
chance of legitimate information from the following domain types:
.edu, .gov, .mil. Sometimes you will see a tilde
(~) in a URL to a .edu – this represents an individual’s
website and NOT necessarily that of an academic department.
In general, you may
need to evaluate the information more carefully from the following
domain types: .com, .net. You will need to verify
information from a .org to establish the legitimacy
of the organization.
Remember, there are
exceptions to EVERY rule, and this rule about URLs is no exception!
-
Look for
the credentials of the author of the information
on the website
-
Look for
date of the last update of the information on the
website
-
Watch
for bias
More criteria for evaluating
websites: Evaluating
Webpages (.pdf)
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How
can I improve the quality of the results I retrieve via Google?
In general, the most
efficient way to use Google for
quality information off the Internet is to use the Advanced
Search feature located to the right of the search bar.
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Locating
scholarly information on the Web
One strategy
for finding websites more appropriate for college-level research
is to use the Advanced
Search feature on Google to limit searching to a specific domain:
.edu. This domain is used only by college and university
sites, so you may have a better chance of finding scholarly information
using the .edu limit compared to a basic Google search.
Using
Google Advanced Search (.pdf)
Another
Internet resource that may be worth exploring is GoogleScholar.
The focus of this Google engine that is to search specifically for
scholarly materials on a particular topic. The results can include
abstracts and some full-text of articles, book citations, reports,
and web pages. One benefit to using GoogleScholar
is that it retrieves results from a wide variety of domains. If
you find a book or an article citation that sounds like it might
be useful, you can check our Catalog
to see if we own the book or check Serials Solutions, accessible
via AGent,
to see if we have access to the article.
Using
the Chaffey Library Catalog (.pdf)
Using Serials Solutions (.pdf)
The following
are some other Internet resources for scholarly literature:
IngentaConnect
Contains citations and abstracts from academic journals on a wide
variety of subjects. Articles are not freely available
full-text; check our databases behind AGent
to see if Chaffey has access to articles.
PLOS:
Biology
Includes
access to primary research articles on biology-related topics
as well as primers (overviews) on topics of current interest in
the field of biology.
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